The present study aimed to conduct a sociological study of the tendency toward sports hooliganism among football fans in the Tractor Sazi–Persepolis match at Takhti Stadium in Tabriz. The research method was quantitative and survey-based. The statistical population consisted of spectators over 18 years of age present at the event. The sample size was estimated at 385 using Cochran’s formula, and ultimately 384 questionnaires were collected and analyzed. Data were collected using a researcher-made questionnaire and analyzed with SPSS 26 and Pearson correlation and multiple regression tests. The results indicated that the significant variables collectively explained 55% of the variance in the tendency toward sports hooliganism. Accordingly, occupational identity (β = -0.42), differential association (β = 0.35), media literacy (β = -0.18), attachment to national identity (β = -0.24), relative deprivation (β = 0.19), cultural capital (β = -0.17), and cultural tolerance (β = -0.11) had significant effects on the dependent variable. Also, education level (β = -0.11) and fan history (β = 0.10) among the demographic variables showed significant effects. The findings indicate that strengthening occupational identity, media literacy, national identity, cultural capital, and cultural tolerance, and reducing relative deprivation and differential association can reduce the tendency toward sports hooliganism. These results emphasize the necessity of attention to structural, identity, and cultural factors in controlling sports violence. Therefore, preventing this phenomenon requires multifaceted sociological, cultural, and media interventions in the sports context.